WASHINGTON—The Co-Chairs of the Blue Dog Coalition—Reps. Tom O’Halleran (AZ-01), Ed Case (HI-01), and Stephanie Murphy (FL-07) made the following statement on the passage of H.R. 7900, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2023:
“This year’s bipartisan defense bill invests in people, programs, and technologies to strengthen our common defense, making our country safer and stronger. We must ensure that our armed forces have the resources necessary to maintain our security posture amidst growing threats.”
The bill included $839.3 billion in discretionary funding for defense, and Blue Dog-led provisions to support servicemembers and bolster oversight. Blue Dog Co-Chair, Rep. Tom O’Halleran included an amendment adopted with bipartisan support that requires the Defense Suicide Prevention Office to establish a procedure for assessing suicide risk at military installations. Additionally, Blue Dog Member, Rep. Abigail Spanberger’s bipartisan amendment was also adopted that requires the Chairperson of the Council of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency to submit a report to Congress on the oversight infrastructure established with respect to the United States’ assistance to Ukraine.
